SciFi TV Japan's Gaijin Channel on Youtube, recently covered the opening of Hideaki Anno's new exhibition: "Special Effects Museum-Craftsmanship of Showa and Heisei Eras Seen Through Miniatures"in Tokyo's Museum of Contemporary Art. The video covers the artwork and original props from TOHO's golden era of science fiction films. The museum includes a very detailed collection of miniature cities, a traditional technique used for recent and past tokusatsu films and series. Hideaki Anno is a well-known Japanese animator and film director best known for his work on the popular anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion.
Ishinomori Manga Museum (Ishinomori Mangakan) in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Japan was one of the worst hit during the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. The structure actually toppled down and left statues AkaRanger and Kamen Rider 1 standing.
Japan is one of the countries very vigilant in preventing illegal uploading of copyrighted content over the web. Now, it is also illegal to download these pirated copies. The House of Councillors' bill to prevent users to download these illegal digital content has been approved and will commence starting October 1st.
The approval for this bill has been voted by 233 out of 242 from the Diet's members and was passed on to passed the Diet's House of Representatives last June 15th. The law also states that it is also banned the ripping on these contents like in CDs or DVDs.
On Black Friday November 25, online figure shop Hobby Link Japan is offering a flat rate of 980 yen for SAL and 1,980 yen for EMS, per order, for orders of any size, to any destination in the world excluding Japan. Yes, if you have purchased items in stock between 2pm November 25 and 2pm November 26, 2011 (Japan Standard Time; GMT+9) you can get it on a flat rate, even if you have 45 items in one shipping - no matter what the size.
Latest photos of the upcoming SH Figuarts figures : Shadowmoon, Tajadol (Tajadoru) Combo, Faiz Blaster form, taken from the Tamashii Feature's Vol.2 ACT-1 in Akihabara, Japan. However, Shadowmoon, Tajadol and Birth in the photos are prototypes and may add improvements as the release dates are getting close.
*S.H. Figuarts Kamen Rider Birth, Release Date: June 2011, Price: TBA
So I got myself some pressure after I posted a video of this review on youtube and various websites. I saw a lot of people from every corner of the world looking into this site. Without further ado here is my written review of the SHFiguarts Kamen Rider Eternal.
I've been waiting and saving for this moment to get the first taste of the figure. There was so much anticipation especially when Kamen Rider W A to Z Gaia Memories of Fate came out on Youtube and from other subbing sites. Everyone thinks this would be epic, but I was skeptical. In my opinion at first and after analyzing the character - I thought there is no way a costume as plain as Eternal would turn as good as other figures like D.Kiva, Emperor form or Ixa. Honestly, Eternal's armor was white, the other color was blue in a form of a flame creeping from the hands to his elbow - that was it. Netizens were chatting that the SHF scale would be the best Bandai toy for January 2011. With all of the hype - I need to see to believe it.
Thanks to some people, they gave me a tip that Eternal has landed in the Lion City and pointed me to the right direction. There I was, in front of the nesting place of the Tokusatsu-related toys shop called the Falcon's Hangar (very original ain't it?). I inquired and handed me what everyone was craving for this month. Gave me a good price and went my way.
The box was very much like the SHF boxes we've seen the past few weeks - a themed box that is similar to the figure, white background highlighted with blue lettering. It shook my nuts a little when I turn to its back side, three profile photos of Eternal. Shoot, I had a similar experience with another SHF exclusive, what dawned to me was Kuuga Amazing Mighty. Why? Kuuga AM was disappointing, less photos mean less goodies (check my review on Kuuga AM to know what I am talking about). I predicted that the box would be thicker like Dark Kiva - it was a sign of relief. This means there are good things inside. So I went back to being a kid opening a present on Christmas day.
Eternal has 7 interchangeable hands wrapped in metallic blue paint. I like blue so this was a plus. Not much sculpting on it because SHF Eternal's extremities anyway are fashioned from the Cyclone Joker figure. Inclusive is the knife which should hold the Eternal memory - unfortunately there is none. The knife is well detailed but lacks the paint it needs to replicate the one seen in the movie. Lastly the cape. The cape is a rubbery-plastic type that has a flowing feel to it and not flat. The rubbery feel ends at the shoulder where the plastic is harder. Underneath the cape are thoughtfully-made separators, which slightly divides the cape from Eternal's body. With this, there is less tension between the cape and figure and minimizes the possibility that the cape would melt on the figure. Especially if you live on a tropical country, when during summer, you can boil an egg under the sun.
SH Figuarts Eternal does have good points. One is the 26 maximum drive holders that are held by the straps. But I hoped Bandai colored each holders with the respective T2 Gaia Memories. Nevertheless, these black straps compensate the plain white canvass. Second, I like hinges on the ankles, it helps the figure to be planted and have a stable position while on different stances. Lastly when accessories play together, Eternal is in its best. Without one or the other, this would be another Kuuga AM in the making.
What I don't like are the blue flames, anklets and bracelets. It brings me back to the day when I was in kindergarten, there were parts that are not painted properly. It is either the missed paint on the flames or over painting it. For someone who is very particular about this may find it very disappointing.
For me, if you can look way pass on the small nitty gritty things and see the whole picture - Eternal is a keeper. Double fans would also see it that way. He may not be the best SHF for 2011 but he is a must to collect. Eternal, by the end of the day , I would say is not for everyone. If you are completist, I suggest to start the hunt. Eternal might not be here Forever.
The rest of my review in a form of a video. Enjoy.
Thanks to johninu87 for the additional photos for both this site and for my video.
Police recently arrested 35-year-old Shibata resident Keiichi Itō and 36-year-old Sanjō resident Jun Fujita on Tuesday for modifying a S.I.C Utopia Dopant violating Japan's Copyright Act by auctioning a modified Kamen Rider W figure online. Both hope that authorities would overlook the situation since they are not mass producing this particular item online. Japan has stricter laws especially on copyright infringement. Toei owns all Kamen Rider related franchise.
Kamen Rider Eternal
According to the police's announcement, the two men modified a figure into a Kamen Rider W villain character in November without the permission of Toei. The auction ended with a closing bid of a whopping 269,001 yen (about US$3,300) from a male buyer in Tokyo.
The two own a custom shop named kenosyokutaku models that specializes in Kamen Rider figures. Their handsome modified version of the SIC figures are popular with fans. Aside from Utopia they had they also did some custom figures of other characters found in the Kamen Rider franchise from the Showa era to the current series Kamen Rider OOO. On their site, they also show how they customize the figures.
notes from the blogger: Customizing figures has been around for decades, made especially for those toy collectors who are not satisfied with the figures that came from the box. This is also very imminent in toy festivals and amine exhibitions. I saw the duo's website and most of the figures posted were actually better than what was released. Toei should have contracted them to do prototypes than incarcerating them. Well that's Japan for you.
Some of their works below. I appreciate their exquisite work of art.
